I looked at Lola grimly, "I'm here today not because you called me and begged me to, but because I really need to register for my own child. My wife left the place in a rush, so she didn't bring any products. I bought some when I came over from the airport."

"Kevin, you liar! You're just trying to gain my attention! Only you would come up with such dirty tricks." Lola rolled her eyes at me.

Since she refused to believe me, I had no choice but to take my child's birth certificate out.

One of Lola's friends snatched it away from me and read the details out loud, "Father: Kevin Sheraton. Mother: Stephanie Smith…"

When they heard the mother's name, Lola furrowed her brows. Then, she looked at me with condescension and mockery.

"Kevin, you really should put more effort into faking this. Do you think you could end up with the heiress of the Smith family, Stephanie Smith? And you're out here saying you got a child with her? Do you think I'm an idiot like you?"

She stuffed the birth certificate back into my hand.

Timothy gave me a mischievous, mocking look. "Kevin, as a man, I can understand your pain of not getting who you love. Lola is a little capricious sometimes, but you really didn't have to go through all these lies just to get back at her. I know you two share ten years of history–"

"What ten years? I don't feel anything for him, Timothy! Don't take it the wrong way!" Lola rushed to sever any connections we had before Timothy could finish his sentence.

She added, "I've had Mishu and Tony for ten years, too! But that doesn't mean anything!"

Mishu was the cat I gave her when she turned 18, while Tony was the dog she adopted because she was worried Mishu would be lonely.

Lola was so desperate to explain that her voice trembled on the edge of tears. I, on the other hand, felt my heart grow colder with every word she said.

Her other friends were throwing insults at me, calling me shameless, saying I was taking advantage of the Smith family.

With Lola taking the lead, they hurled further insults as if I had committed a huge crime.

I sighed and kept my child's birth certificate. Reason told me that I should not waste my breath on people like them, but the more condescending their gazes were, the more I wanted to prove myself.

I took my phone out and showed them my wedding and family portrait. "This is my family. You can have a look if you don't believe me."

I raised my phone and showed it to them. When my phone was in front of Lola, all she took was one glance, and her smile vanished. She stared at my phone in a daze for a long time.

One of her friends noticed her odd reaction and immediately snatched my phone, scrolling past all the photos while mocking me, "Tsk! I'm going to see to what extent you can continue this lie!"

Lola pretended not to care, but she kept looking at my phone intently.

The friend scrolling past my phone's photo album grew quieter as doubt slowly crept into her.

Lola could not take it any longer. She immediately snatched the phone over. When she saw my family portrait of three, her phone trembled a little.

Then, she glared at me with reddened eyes, but her tone was no longer as sure as before. "Kevin! Don't think that just because you've edited a few photos, I'll cave in and marry you! Let's see how many photos you've Photoshopped just so you can be with me!"

Timothy immediately went up to her and consoled her, "Lola, why don't we go to Bailey Island for our wedding photoshoot?"

Lola did not respond to him sweetly as usual. She was obsessively scrolling on my phone, and her face paled with every passing photo.

"No! They're all fake, they must be!"

I shrugged and smiled helplessly. I wanted to take my phone back from Lola, but she would not let go.

She scrolled until the end of the album when her face suddenly popped up on the screen. As if finally having leverage, she yelled, "Ah-ha! Didn't you say you were married? Please explain to me why you still have a photo of me?"

Her friends instantly snatched my phone over and mocked me once more, as if I was finally exposed for lying.

"Kevin, I really thought you'd finally grown a spine! Turns out you've just Photoshopped some photos to lie to us!"

"I knew it! He had been happily slaving away for Lola all these years. How could he possibly marry someone else? He would probably spend his entire life serving Lola!"

Lola immediately turned smug and looked at me disdainfully with a raised chin. "Kevin, I overestimated you. I almost believed your lie! How lonely are you to create so many fake photos? And you even used Ms. Smith's face! I feel ashamed for you, even if you don't!"

She threw my phone to the ground. It fell with a loud crack.

"Stop!"

I was too late. When I bent down to pick up my phone, the phone was broken into pieces.

I wanted to pick it up because this was my wedding gift from my wife, but one of Lola's friends immediately stepped on it.

"You liked to pretend, right? Aren't you the son-in-law of the Smith family? Why do you even care about some stupid phone?"

"That's right! You think that just because of some birth certificate and some stupid photos, you'd make Lola regret and want you back? Take a good look at yourself in the mirror!"

Timothy furrowed his brows and told them to stop. Then, he pretended to show some kindness and helped me up, but in the process, the diapers in my arms fell to the ground, scattered all over the spilt milk. The entire scene was tragic to behold.

"I'm sorry, Kevin. Lola shouldn't have done this." Timothy wanted to apologize, but Lola interrupted him, "He's out here being disgusting and a liar, yet I'm the one to blame? Did I ask him to pursue me for ten years?

"Timothy, you're just too kind, which is why he'd so boldly make fake photos. You don't have to apologize to someone like him! Even standing close to him makes me want to puke!"

At that moment, Lola's phone rang.

"Lola! Where are you? We already told you the time and place. Why are you still not here yet?"

Lola's mother's voice rang out in the video call. Lola and I were neighbors when we were young, so our parents both know each other.

"Mom, why should I go to celebrate your friend having a grandchild? You go and have fun! I'm busy!" Lola brushed her off, about to hang up.

"What are you talking about? You and Kevin grew up together! You didn't even attend his wedding! How could you skip out on his welcome baby party!"

Lola's smile stiffened. She looked at me, stunned.

"Hold on there, Mom! Who did you say got married and had a child?"

At one point, she turned her phone toward me. Her mother greeted me affectionately, "Oh, Kevin! So you're with Lola now! Once you register your baby, bring her over! Show her how cute your daughter is!"

I nodded and was just about to exchange pleasantries with Lola's mother when Lola hung up.

She walked over to me, furious, "Kevin, how low can you stoop?! You'd even go to the extent of lying to my parents? You should just give up on me! I'll never ever get together with a liar like you! You disgust me!"

Then, she raised her hand, about to slap me.

The next second, a bodyguard grabbed her hand. A familiar voice rang out behind me, "Who would dare to lay a finger on my husband?"